Smoking-waste receptacle

ABSTRACT

A smoking-waste receptacle includes a housing and a container for receiving smoking waste and that can be inserted into and removed from the housing. The container includes a removal opening that permits removal of smoking waste deposited in the container and a door movable relative to the removal opening and configured to cover the removal opening when the container is disposed in the housing. The container can include a container body and flow-inhibiting structure disposed within the container body to inhibit smoke from leaving the container body. The container can includes a first wall extending substantially vertically, a first insertion opening in the first wall that allows smoking waste to be inserted into the container, and a first snuff member disposed within the container and adjacent the first insertion opening at a position that permits smoking waste that has been inserted into the first insertion opening to be pushed against the first snuff member.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

This Application is a Divisional Application of U.S. application Ser.No. 10/402,985, filed Apr. 1, 2003, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/401,031, filed Aug. 6, 2002, and U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/447,708, filed Feb. 19, 2003, disclosuresof which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a smoking-waste receptacle and, moreparticularly, to a smoking-waste receptacle having a baffle system.

2. Description of Related Art

Smoking-waste receptacles are often provided in public spaces so thatsmokers can dispose of smoking waste, e.g., lit cigarettes or cigarettebutts. conventional smoking-waste receptacles have numerousshortcomings.

For example, a conventional smoking-waste receptacle provides a bed ofsand into which a smoker can insert a lit cigarette to extinguish thecigarette. The smoking waste is then left in the sand. Suchsmoking-waste receptacles are not highly desirable because they requirethe servicer to bend over, take the unit apart, and sift through thesand to remove the smoking waste. This process can be unsanitary andtime consuming. Also, the process typically requires some type ofaccessory tool, which results in increased costs. Also, the servicer maybe required to perform movements that are ergonomically undesirable.

Another conventional smoking-waste receptacle has a container forreceiving smoking waste, which is disposed within a housing. Thecontainer may not extinguish the smoking waste as expeditiously asdesired. Also, tools may be needed to remove smoking waste, whichrequires undesirable cost and effort. The servicer may be required toperform movements that are ergonomically undesirable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An aspect of the present invention relates to a smoking-waste receptacleincluding a housing and a container for receiving smoking waste and thatcan be inserted into and removed from the housing. The containerincludes a removal opening that permits removal of smoking wastedeposited in the container and a door movable relative to the removalopening and configured to cover the removal opening when the containeris disposed in the housing.

Another aspect of the present invention relates to a smoking-wastereceptacle including a housing and a container for receiving smokingwaste and that can be inserted into and removed from the housing. Thecontainer includes a container body and flow-inhibiting structuredisposed within the container body to inhibit smoke from leaving thecontainer body.

Yet another aspect of the present invention relates to a smoking-wastereceptacle including a container for receiving smoking waste. Thecontainer includes a first wall extending substantially vertically, afirst insertion opening in the first wall that allows smoking waste tobe inserted into the container, and a first snuff member disposed withinthe container and adjacent the first insertion opening at a positionthat permits smoking waste that has been inserted into the firstinsertion opening to be pushed against the first snuff member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate a preferred embodiment of theinvention and together with the description, serve to explain principlesof the invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a smoking-wastereceptacle according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the smoking-waste receptacle of FIG.1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view a housing and a portion of a container ofthe smoking-waste receptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of a housing and a portion ofa container having an alternative configuration.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the container of the smoking-wastereceptacle of FIG. 1 with a door in an open position.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the container of the smoking-wastereceptacle of FIG. 1 having the door in a closed position.

FIG. 7 is a front view of the container of the smoking-waste receptacleof FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the container of the smoking-waste receptacleof FIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is a side view of the container of the smoking-waste receptacleof FIG. 1.

FIG. 10 is a rear view of the container of the smoking-waste receptacleof FIG. 1.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a top member of the smoking-wastereceptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the container of the smoking-wastereceptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 13 is cross-sectional view of the container of the smoking-wastereceptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the bottom of the container of thesmoking-waste receptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 15 is a bottom view of the container of the smoking-wastereceptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the bottom of a container having analternative spring-locking mechanism.

FIG. 17 is a bottom view of the container with the alternativespring-locking mechanism shown in FIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is a partial cross-sectional view of the spring-lockingmechanism of the container of the smoking-waste receptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 19 is a partial cross-sectional view of the spring-lockingmechanism of the container of the smoking-waste receptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 20 is a partial cross-sectional view of the spring-lockingmechanism of the container of the smoking-waste receptacle of FIG. 1.

FIG. 21 is a partial perspective view of a container showing analternative door.

FIG. 22 is a partial cross-sectional view of the container of FIG. 21with the door in an open position.

FIG. 23 is a partial cross-sectional view of the container of FIG. 21with the door in a closed position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to presently preferred embodimentsof the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. An effort has been made to use the same reference numbersthroughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

FIGS. 1 to 3, 5 to 15, and 18 to 20 show a first preferred embodiment ofa smoking-waste receptacle 10 according to the present invention. Inthis embodiment, the smoking-waste receptacle 10 includes a housing 20,a support base 30, and a container 40 for receiving smoking waste andthat can be inserted into and removed from the housing.

The housing 20 preferably supports the container 40 and can provide anaesthetically pleasing appearance. The housing 20 can be, for example, afour sided cone 21 having four side walls 22. The cone 21 is preferablysubstantially hollow, which provides the desirable feature of relativelylight weight. In particular, the distance between side walls 22 of thecone 21 and the container 40 preferably increases from a top toward abottom of the cone 21 (see FIG. 2). The housing 20 can be made ofplastic that provides a smooth surface that is easy to clean, and faderesistant. A preferred plastic is high density polyethylene. When madeof such plastic, the housing 20 can be formed by injection molding.

The cone 21 can have a message displaying surface 23 on an exteriorportion, e.g. one of the side walls 22. The message displaying surface23 can be a substantially flat vertical side that could allow formessages, such as, “No Smoking Beyond This Point,” or provide space forbranding.

The housing 20 can have an access hole 24 at a top portion 25,preferably at the top center, to allow insertion of the container 40.The access hole 24 has a rim 26 that grips an upper portion of thecontainer 40 when the container 40 is fully inserted into the housing20.

The support base 30 preferably assists in supporting both the housing 20and the container 40 and assists in maintaining them in verticallyupright positions. The support base 30 is preferably made of metal. Italso can be provided with weight(s) (not shown) to enhance stability.

The container 40 provides a receptacle for smoking waste, such asburning cigarettes. The container 40 is preferably made of metal. Itcould, however, be made of plastics, fiberglass, or anothernon-contributing material. The container 40 preferably survives a firelong enough to snuff it out, but is durable enough to survive impacttesting.

The container 40 can be inserted into the access hole 24 in the housing20. See FIG. 3. A width of an upper portion 43 (see FIG. 2) of thecontainer 40 is preferably greater than a width of a lower portion 44 ofthe container 40 such that the rim 26 does not grip the lower portion 44of the container 40 as the container 40 is inserted into the housing 20,but will grip the upper portion 43 when the container is fully insertedinto the housing 20. The tapering of the container 40 from a largerwidth to a smaller width allows a door 70 (discussed below) sufficientclearance to pass through the rim 26 of the access hole 24, while therim 26 will still snugly hold the top portion of the container 40 whenit is fully inserted into the housing 20. Alternatively, conventionalsnap or twist lock (not shown) could be used to hold the container 40 inthe housing 20. As shown in FIG. 4, a key 150 can be provided on thecontainer 40 that mates with a slot 151 on the housing 20 to ensure thatthe container 40 is inserted only in a predetermined orientation.

The container 40 can have a top member 41 and a container body 45. Thecontainer 40 preferably has four side walls 46, i.e., first throughfourth walls, that provide a substantially square cross-sectional shape.The container could, however, have an alternate cross-sectional shape,e.g., circular, rectangular, or oval.

The top member 41 limits flow of fluid and other items into and out ofthe container 40. The top member 41 can be made of, for example, diecast aluminum. The top member 41 has at least one insertion opening 42,which can be disposed on a wall 46 of the container 40. There arepreferably two insertion openings 42, i.e., first and second openings.The insertion opening 42 permits smoking waste to be deposited withinthe container 40, while limiting fluid flow. The insertion opening 42 ispreferably large enough that burning materials can be deposited, yetsmall enough to limit the amount of smoke (from burning materialsdeposited in the container 40) that can exit the container 40.Preferably the insertion opening has a circular shape with a diameter inthe range of approximately 0.75 to 1.75 inches (an area of approximately0.4 to 2.4 square inches) and more preferably a diameter in the range ofapproximately 1.0 to 1.5 inches (an area of approximately 0.8 to 1.8square inches).

A snuff member 48 can be disposed within the container 40 (see FIG. 11).There are preferably two snuff members 48, i.e., first and second snuffmembers. For example, the snuff member 48 can be a plate 49 extendingsubstantially vertically and being horizontally displaced relative tothe insertion opening 42. The snuff member 48 can be disposed adjacentthe insertion opening 42 at a position (e.g., approximately one inchfrom the opening) that inhibits flow of fluid through the container 40and that permits smoking waste that has been inserted into the insertionopening 42 to be pushed against the snuff member 48.

The container body 45 preferably has four side walls 46 and a bottomwall 47. The container body 45 can be made, for example, from sheetmetal formed into a desired shape and joined at a seam. The containerbody 45 can be joined to the top member 41 by, for example, rivets (notshown).

Flow-inhibiting structure 50 can be disposed within the container body45 and configured to inhibit smoke from leaving the container body 45(see FIGS. 2, 12, and 13). The trapped smoke can reduce oxygen in thecontainer body 45 and thus can assist in extinguishing burning materialswithin the container body 45. The flow-inhibiting structure 50preferably includes a first baffle 51 projecting from a first interiorsurface of the container body 45 and a second baffle 52 below the firstbaffle and projecting from a second interior surface of the containerbody 45. The first baffle 51 and the second baffle 52 project inopposite directions. The first and second baffles 51, 52 may each beformed as generally U-shaped members including side walls that connectto the container body 45 by, for example, spot welding, and a plate 53,54 that extends downward and at an angle α within the range of 30° to50°, more preferably about 45°, relative to the corresponding one of thefirst and second interior surfaces of the container body 45. Though theplates 53, 54 are generally square shaped, they have arcuate cut outs55, 56 that provide space between the plates 533, 54 and the side walls46 to permit smoking waste to fall toward the bottom wall 47 of thecontainer body 45. The area of each of the plates 53, 54 is preferablywithin the range of 7 to 9 square inches. The angles, number of baffles51, 52 and size of the baffles 51, 52 can be altered from those shown inthe drawings.

The container 40 can include a removal opening 60 (see FIG. 5) in one ormore of the walls 46 of the container 40. The removal opening 60 permitsremoval of smoking waste deposited in the container 40. When thecontainer 40 is disposed in the housing 20, the removal opening 60 canbe covered by the door 70 to prevent the smoking waste from leaking fromthe container 40.

The door 70 can be movable relative to the removal opening 60 to provideaccess to smoking waste within the container body 45 so that thecontainer 40 can be emptied. The door 70 preferably is slidablyconnected to the container body 45 to move between an open position anda closed position. More preferably, the door 70 is configured to slidefrom the open position to the closed position under the force of gravitywhen the container 40 is in an orientation in which the container 40 canbe inserted into the housing 20. A pin 61, such as a rivet, projectsfrom the container body 45 and extends into a receiving slot 71 in thedoor 70. The pin-in-slot connection slidably connects the door 70 to thecontainer body 45. Pins 73, such as rivets, on the door 70 projectinwardly and slidably engage walls 46 of the container body 45 aroundthe opening 60 to assist in positioning the door 70 relative to thecontainer body 45. Edges 74 of the door 70 wrap around corners of thecontainer body 45 to further assist in positioning the door 70 on thecontainer body 45 and closing the removal opening 60.

A spring-latch mechanism 80 is configured to maintain the door in theclosed position. The spring-latch mechanism 80 includes a spring 81 thatextends into an engaging portion 75 (preferably a hole) of the door 70when the door 70 is in the closed position. The spring 81 is preferablyconnected to a wall 46 of the container body 45 by, for example, spotwelding. The spring 81 automatically engages the engaging portion 75 ofthe door 70 when the door 70 is in the closed position. In particular,as shown in FIGS. 18 to 20, as the door 70 drops toward the closedposition its leading edge engages a sloped portion 82 of the spring 81,causing the spring 81 to retract. After the door 70 reaches the closedposition where it abuts a bent portion of the bottom wall 47, the spring81 extends into the engaging portion 75 of the door 70 (see FIG. 20). Asshown in FIGS. 14 and 15, the spring 81 can be pushed in the directionof the arrow out of engagement with the engaging portion 75 such thatthe door 70 can be moved to the open position. When the spring 81 ispushed out of engagement, a pin 66, such as a rivet, projecting from thebottom wall 47 prevents the spring 81 from being over compressed.

FIGS. 16 and 17 show an alternative embodiment of the spring-latchmechanism 80. In this embodiment, the spring 181 extends into engagingportions 175 formed on edges 74 of door 70.

FIGS. 21 to 23 show an alternative embodiment of the door 170. In thisembodiment, the door 170 is pivotally connected to the retainer body 45by a conventional hinge 178 to move between an open position and aclosed position. Edges 174 of the door 170 wrap around corners of thecontainer body 45 to further assist in positioning the door 170 on thecontainer body 45 and closing the removal opening 60.

A locking mechanism 180 can be used to hold the door 170 in the closedposition. The locking mechanism 180 has an interference portion 181 thatengages a corresponding portion 149 of the container 40 to hold the door170 in the closed position due to engagement. A handle 182 is connectedto the locking mechanism 180 such that pressure on the handle 182 biasesthe interference portion 181 toward a position of reduced engagementbetween the interference portion 181 and the portion 149 of thecontainer 40 to permit the door 170 to be moved to the open position.When the door 170 is closed, pulling the handle 182 allows theinterference portion to be pulled over the portion 149 of the containerbody 45 and thus permits the door 170 to be opened. The door 170 can beclosed by reversing the procedure.

In this embodiment, handle 182 extends below the bottom wall 47 of thecontainer body 45 so as to not interfere with insertion of the container40 into the housing 20. The container 40 is configured such that thedoor 170 must be in the closed position to permit insertion of thecontainer 40 into the housing 20, which enhances fire safety.

As described below, there are significant advantages that can berealized by the embodiments set forth above. Of course, it is notnecessary for the invention to achieve all or any of these advantages.

The present invention permits configuring a device that allows for theremoval of the smoking waste without ergonomically unfriendly efforts,such as bending over. The servicer can, while standing upright, removethe container 40 from the housing 20 and open the door 70, 170. The door70, 170 can be open by a relatively simple motion, and more difficultmotions, such as an unscrewing motion, are not necessary. The presentinvention thus may minimizes the purchaser's medical costs by using thisergonomic design (no bending or twisting motion).

The present invention also allows for the removal of smoking wastewithout any accessory tools (e.g., buckets, sand sifters, screw drivers,and allen wrenches). Thus, the cost and effort associated with accessorytools is eliminated. Also, the time needed to remove the smoking wastecan be reduced, which may result in decreased expenses.

The design permits servicing without touching unsanitary portions of theashtray. The servicer merely flips open the access door. The areacontacted by the servicer's hand, i.e., an outer surface on the door, isnot exposed to the contents of the container 40. Thus, the risk of crosscontamination is greatly reduced.

The present invention also can be configured to reduce the likelihood ofspills, which would require secondary cleaning. For example, even withthe access door 70, 170 open, the contents can be contained while movingthe container 40 to a larger fire safe disposal containment unit.

Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled inthe arts from consideration of the specification and practice of theinvention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification andexamples be considered as exemplary only.

1. A smoking-waste receptacle comprising: a container for receivingsmoking waste, wherein the container includes a first wall extendingsubstantially vertically, a first insertion opening in the first wallthat allows smoking waste to be inserted into the container, and a firstsnuff member disposed within the container and adjacent the firstinsertion opening at a position that permits smoking waste that has beeninserted into the first insertion opening to be pushed against the firstsnuff member.
 2. The smoking-waste receptacle of claim 1, wherein thefirst snuff member includes a first plate extending substantiallyvertically and being horizontally displaced relative to the firstinsertion opening.
 3. The smoking-waste receptacle of claim 1, whereinthe container includes a second wall extending substantially vertically,a second insertion opening in the second wall that allows smoking wasteto be inserted into the container, and a second snuff member disposedwithin the container and adjacent the second insertion opening at aposition that permits smoking waste that has been inserted into thesecond insertion opening to be pushed against the second snuff member.4. The smoking-waste receptacle of claim 3, wherein the second snuffmember includes a second plate extending substantially vertically andbeing horizontally displaced relative to the second insertion opening.5. The smoking-waste receptacle of claim 1, further comprising a housinginto which the container can be inserted and removed.
 6. Thesmoking-waste receptacle of claim 5, wherein the housing includes a coneformed of plastic.
 7. The smoking-waste receptacle of claim 5, whereinthe housing includes a substantially hollow cone.
 8. The smoking-wastereceptacle of claim 7, wherein the cone includes at least one side walland a distance between the side wall and the container increases from atop toward a bottom of the cone.
 9. The smoking-waste receptacle ofclaim 5, wherein the housing includes a cone having a message displayingsurface on an exterior portion.